Where are the Best Places to Eat in Yellowstone? We’ve Got You Covered. (2024)

You’ve got your lodging, and travel arrangements, and know the sights you want to see in Yellowstone National Park. All that is left is figuring out where to eat! Whether you are on a budget or seeking to experience Yellowstone through its cuisine, this guide has got you covered.

Yellowstone National Park has 20 restaurants spread across the park offering grab-and-go, quick service, full service, and upscale dining with prices ranging from $8-$40 per meal. There are also 7 general stores offering counter service and have picnic supplies available for purchase. Most restaurants and stores are open May-September but a few remain open year-round.

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Yellowstone Dining by Location

Yellowstone is a big place! It can take between 4-7 hours to drive completely around the Grand Loop Road. Determine where to eat based on where you will be staying or visiting that day.

Below is a map that breaks down the areas with dining services throughout the park.

Canyon Village Dining

Canyon Village has 5 restaurants and 1 general store. They are open from mid-May through mid-October with meals ranging in price from $8-$23 with grab-and-go, quick service, and full-service options. Picnic supplies can also be purchased at the general store.

Unique Experience: Canyon Lodge M66 Grill

Built in 2015, this restaurant has a very modern feel to it and its focus is retro-themed dishes with a focus on serving fresh, local food in a sustainable way. If you want a real taste of Yellowstone, you can try the sauteed red trout served with cilantro pesto and white and red rice with roasted, seasonal vegetables.

For breakfast, guests love the Montana Cream of the West Seven Grain Buttermilk Pancakes served with a choice of blueberries, bananas, pecans, or chocolate chips made with ingredients from the local company Montana Grains.

Some guests complain that this restaurant lacks flavor and is overpriced, but if you are looking for creativity in the newest location, this is the place for you.

Family Friendly: Canyon Lodge Ice Creamery

I lived in Missoula, Montana for a summer and saw giant lines wrapping throughout the parking lot outside of the ice cream shop, The Big Dipper. After trying it out, the lines made sense! It was the creamiest, most delicious ice cream I’d ever tasted, and the flavors were so unique.

The Big Dipper supplies ice cream to all the Yellowstone restaurants and you won’t be disappointed if you take a little break from the day and treat the kids (and yourself) to a waffle cone or sundae. Although the salted caramel is one of my favorites, I suggest the huckleberry as those delectable tiny berries are a treasure of Montana.

Grant Village Dining

Grant Village has 2 restaurants and 1 general store. They are open from late May through late September with meals ranging in price from $15-$23 with grab-and-go, fast-casual, and full-service options. Picnic supplies can also be purchased at the general store.

Unique Experience: Grant Village Lake House Restaurant

Serving traditional American dinners, the real star of this restaurant is the atmosphere. Located along the shores of Yellowstone Lake with a view of the Absaroka Mountains, you will love this location with its true Yellowstone feel. Plus, if you’ve got a big appetite, they serve an all-you-care-to-eat breakfast bar.

Family-Friendly: Grant Village General Store

Growing up, my family always camped at Grant Village and one of my favorite memories was when I would get to visit the Grant Village General Store and pick out my souvenir. The shop was giant and the possibilities were endless. My favorite was the wilderness-themed toys like slingshots or beaded necklaces.

As an adult, I appreciate the general store for its picnic supplies. Although I’m grateful for the 20 restaurants in the park giving me the convenience of not having to cook, my favorite way to eat in the park is to pack a picnic.

There are abundant picnic areas throughout the park where you can sit and take in the sights and sounds of nature while the children explore and get their wiggles out. Plus, you have some food packed to eat in your car if you get stuck in a buffalo traffic jam!

Mammoth Hot Springs Dining

Mammoth Hot Springs has 4 restaurants and 1 general store. They are open year-round (although a few close briefly from March-late April) with meals ranging in price from $8.00-$38.00 with drinks, grab and go, quick service, and full-service options. Picnic supplies can also be purchased at the general store.

Unique Dining Experience: Mammoth Hotel Dining Room

The average temperature in Yellowstone is 0-20 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter. If you are willing to brave the cold, you deserve a nice dinner, and the Mammoth Hotel Dining Room is just the spot to warm you up.

I have never eaten here, but called some Yellowstone employees and they recommended the steak and the small plate appetizers.

Depending on what time you are there in the winter, it may be your only food option besides the general store. Check out our article Winter in Yellowstone: What to Expect + Things to Do.

Old Faithful Dining

Old Faithful has the most places to eat in Yellowstone National Park with 5 restaurants and 2 general stores that are open mid-April through early November with meals ranging in price from $8.00-$35.00 with grab and go, quick service, fast-casual and full-service options. Picnic supplies can also be purchased at the general stores.

Unique Dining Experience and Family Friendly: Old Faithful Lodge Cafeteria

Although there is plenty of good food to go around including the bison meatloaf, the best part of eating at the Old Faithful Lodge Cafeteria is the view. If you get a table by the window, you have a front-row view of the world-famous Old Faithful Geyser. Enjoyable for all in your party.

Other offerings available to order are barbecue sandwiches, roasted carved turkey, entrée salads, and deli sandwiches. Another favorite is to grab an ice cream cone from the Lobby Snack Shops and enjoy it on the porch while viewing the geyser basin.

Lake Village Dining

Lake Village Dining has 3 restaurants and 1 general store. They are open roughly May through September with meals ranging in price from $8.00-$40.00 with grab-and-go, quick service, Fast casual, and upscale options. Picnic supplies can also be purchased at the general store.

Unique Dining Experience: Lake Hotel Dining Room

After a day of roughing it, an evening of elegance is a delightful reprieve. For an upscale experience with white, linen tablecloths and specialty dishes of pheasant and grilled bison rib-eye in a location that makes you feel like you are in a completely different era, the Lake Hotel Dining Room is a good bet. Visitors frequently eat here when celebrating a special occasion.

A reservation is needed for dinner but not necessary for breakfast or lunch. Guests enjoy Huckleberry pancakes or stuffed french toast for breakfast and bison burgers or lentil burgers (for the vegetarian) for lunch. If you’ve never sampled bison, you need to give it a try- it’s part of the Yellowstone experience.

Family-Friendly Experience: Lake Village General Store

Although it sounds nice to visit Wylie’s Canteen and relax by one of the two fireplaces or possibly view elk and bison grazing outside, I have to be honest and say that my children would be much happier enjoying pizza, nachos, and ice cream from the Lake Village General Store.

The Lake Village area has a couple of nice sit-down restaurants, but a vacation to Yellowstone requires a lot of driving around and the last thing my children want to do is sit some more. Plus, all the general stores have interesting items that are not in most stores that kids will be fascinated to explore. Just be ready to buy a souvenir.

Tower-Roosevelt Dining

Tower-Roosevelt area has 1 restaurant and 1 general store that are open June through early September with meals ranging in price from $8.00-$23.00 with grab-and-go, quick service, and full-service options. Picnic supplies can also be purchased at the general store.

Unique Dining Experience: Roosevelt Lodge Dining Room and Old West Cookout

Built next to one of Teddy Roosevelt’s favorite places, the Roosevelt Lodge is dedicated to giving you a taste of the Old West with menu items like Apple-Wood Smoked Baby Back Ribs, BBQ beef burgers, and Bison tamales. The lodge maintains a rustic charm and guests can relax on the rocking chairs on the front porch and take in the scenery.

For a real Old West experience, sign up for the Old West Cookout where you can take a horseback or covered wagon ride out to the prairie and enjoy a real chuck wagon dinner with watermelon, coleslaw, potato salad, Roosevelt beans, sirloin steak, corn, corn muffin, & fruit cobbler. The guides will tell you about the area, lead you in camp songs, and you may even spy an animal along the way. Prices range from ~$65-$116 per person and you’ll want to plan on 3 hours for the entire experience.

We did this and we really enjoyed it! Read our review of the Old West Cookout to help you decide if this experience is for you.

Family Friendly: Ice cream at Tower Fall General Store

Although this is one of the smallest general stores in the park, my family never views Tower Falls without an ice cream cone. A childhood tradition started in my family growing up, it was a much-anticipated reward for being pleasant in the car. Don’t underestimate the power of ice cream from Big Dipper Ice Cream to give you a recharge and create a family memory while viewing an amazing waterfall.

Final Thoughts on Food and Restaurants

Yellowstone’s commitment to sustainable cuisine that is local and organic is commendable. Nothing like the beauty of a national park gives you the motivation to consume more responsibly and it’s great that Yellowstone enables guests to do this. Yellowstone’s 20 restaurants are spread throughout the park and offer a wide range of dining options and prices to suit any traveler. Even if you arrive at the park with nothing but your wallet, you aren’t going to go hungry.

However, most are not overly impressed with the quality of food served in Yellowstone National Park. With the exception of ice cream, I prefer to prepare a picnic and enjoy dining outside, as do most guests. If you are staying in a lodge or hotel, I recommend purchasing breakfast items and picnic supplies from the nearest general store and packing a lunch. This will allow you an early start to your day and some spontaneity for lunch when you see a place you’d like to further explore.

I also recommend the Old West Cookout for dinner one night. You will enjoy a break from sightseeing and get a glimpse into the West of the past.

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